Mushroom pate and contemporary art

This saying came up in one of the brilliant series of four Reith lectures by Grayson Perry who explored topics such as what makes good art, who should judge art and how to become a contemporary artist. Grayson is a cross-dressing potter who by his own admission protects his ball of creative energy “with a shield made of jaded irony. A helmet of mischief and a breast plate of facetiousness,” and wields a “carefully crafted blade of cynicism”. His extensive knowledge, sparkling wit, honesty and great delivery meant I forcibly clamped my headphones onto my youngest teen’s ears and have been urging anyone with the slightest interest in creativity to listen ever since.

The fashion equivalent of this paté wouldn’t get near Grayson’s wardrobe; it’s resolutely beige as opposed to his peacock colours (he attributes his cross dressing to being poppered into a PVC pottery smock at the age of nine). On my visit to Borough Market one of the things I tasted was mushroom pate from Pate Moi. I was reminded of just how good a simple purée of funghi with something creamy and something spicy can be. It was tucked away in my food memory and resurfaced when I returned to Dubai. Now I’m sure that this recipe is far from original, (just how many variations on mushrooms with cream can there be?) but it’s what I created in my kitchen. I was almost going down the classic lemon, garlic and parsley route but had some thyme in the fridge that needed using up and a bowl full of oranges.

As for my teen, when I told her I’d linked Grayson Perry to a recipe for mushroom pate she enquired, “Did you serve it in a pot?”! So the question is, if I served this paté in a Turner prize winning pot would food be art?

Melt the butter or ghee in a large flat pan and lightly fry the onion until soft. Add the garlic and stir through, then add the mushrooms to the pan and fry until they begin to brown, soften and shrink. Cook until any mushroom juices have evaporated. Pour in the orange juice and zest, and cognac, cook for a couple of minutes, stirring until the liquids reduce. Add the thyme and stir for a further minute, then add a good grating of nutmeg.

Remove from the heat and spoon the contents of the pan into a blender or food processor*. Add the créme frâiche, along with sea salt (approx. 1 teaspoon) and freshly ground black pepper. Blend until smooth. (*If you want a chunkier texture, add half at a time and give a whizz for a quick burst only for the second batch.)

Spoon the mixture into small ramekin dishes or a jar, smooth the top of the paté level with a knife or spatula. Melt a large knob of butter or ghee and pour carefully over the paté. Cool and leave in the fridge for at least an hour before serving. It will keep for at least a week.

Serve with butter on brown bread or crackers with gherkins, add to pasta as a sauce or as a baked potato topping. Tastes great on rye bread or brioche with chutney. As a lover of meat-based paté I can say honestly that this was equally satisfying – maybe due to the cognac.

Lovely pictures….glad you’re getting your children to listen to some good stuff. Art’s a difficult thing to talk about and Grayson Perry does it well. I found that my time at art school taught me all the things that I didn’t need to know…so that got them all out of the way in one fell swoop….that was the art schools of the 60’s, so maybe it’s changed:)

I’d never had much time for Grayson Perry before, although I love his work. After listening to his lectures, I was astonished. He managed to demystify art and how we could/ should encounter it. There was none of the self righteous anger of some of the earlier Turner Prize winners, just an engaging thoughtful, grounded attitude that was also very funny. As for your pate, in a jar or Turner Prize pot, good food is always art!! GG

Being out of the UK he was totally off my radar but I’m now an avid fan. Funny and wise….I was listening to the podcast on my morning walk and had to keep stopping to make notes on my ipod – not easy without glasses and with two dogs in tow. The purpose of creating art? “meaning making” – this really struck a chord with me.

Not a huge fan of modern art but I am a fan of paté, especially this lovely pot of flavors Sally. I often add mushrooms to my chicken liver paté but I never thought of making one wholly out of mushrooms. I thank you and my vegetarian daughters thank you!

Honestly you don’t miss the absence of liver. I made this with my vegetarian daughter in mind but she is on the first rung of liking mushrooms and wouldn’t eat it. I had no problem polishing off the jar myself 🙂

Beautiful recipe and thoughtful post. I will have to click on that link when I know I will have time to sit and appreciate it. My in-laws are very arty (one is an architect and painter, and the other used to be a theatre director) and I always feel a bit left out when they go on about paintings and performances. I hope to pick up a clever bon mot to drop in the conversation! Yes, that shallow 😀 PS These images ARE art.

I have never tasted a Mushroom paté and this looks so tempting. Whether you serve it in a Turner Prize winning pot or not, this is still going to be art. Our closest pals are vegetarians and I am often struggling to come up with ‘new’ veg dishes for them, so this is surely going to be on my Christmas dinner.